Breaking down Aaron Boone’s rant + Are the Rays buyers or sellers?

00:00:00
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's what he said.

00:00:01
Speaker 2: That's what he said.

00:00:03
Speaker 1: That's what he said.

00:00:04
Speaker 2: That's what he said. Hey, we don't usually do this, but I want to make sure I give context as we're about to play two to three minutes of an interview on Talking Yanks with Aaron Boone, and Boone got pretty heated and it's really interesting. You're gonna hear from Trevor May and cam Maven right after that, and then later in this pod you're gonna hear from Mark Topkin, who covers the Rays, and he'll give us the goods on the Rays. But let's start with Boonie heated defending postgame interviews.

00:00:36
Speaker 3: Okay, so flatty diving means they wanted it more last night.

00:00:41
Speaker 4: No, it doesn't mean that, but it's like that that it's like that visual then to like the post games of like it's July. There's a lot of season left when you're two.

00:00:49
Speaker 3: But understand the pestering, bantering, leading questions that are being asked. I understand that you're not and I don't want him to just fly off the handle and be emotional. Like you know, we've been pretty good over the years of like compartmentalizing and and dealing with the everyday grind of the regular season and playing in New York and all they and you start getting emotional and going down that road. It's a bad trade.

00:01:12
Speaker 1: I get it.

00:01:13
Speaker 4: I guess there's just a difference. Like, you know, we've had a couple of bad outings. The way he talked to the media, it just felt honest and it felt like different.

00:01:20
Speaker 3: Stop with the reaction of how a guy answers a fricking question.

00:01:23
Speaker 4: It's not but it's not. It's not one guy.

00:01:25
Speaker 3: It's it's like, okay, okay, we we gotta win.

00:01:30
Speaker 4: We understand to win. Okay, I remember my question from earlier.

00:01:33
Speaker 3: We are we are obsessed with it and hell ben preparation wise and guys give a rip.

00:01:38
Speaker 4: Okay, so this is great, but this doesn't come through.

00:01:40
Speaker 3: Everyone handles things different. Some people will give you colorful answers. Yeah, ooh, I love that media answer. Some guys throw their helmet. Does that make you feel good? Some guys are calm, like, stop it. It doesn't mean a guy cares more or less because he dives into home plate.

00:01:56
Speaker 5: Okay, well yeah, yeah, okay.

00:01:59
Speaker 3: It's it's it's you gotta be angry at something. Because we didn't win, or so I gotta direct my anger at something.

00:02:07
Speaker 4: Yeah, I just I hear you're saying that you guys feel urgency that you want to win. That doesn't come across the messaging has been there's a lot of season left. We just got to keep going and we're fine. You know, No, I don't. I don't. I don't regret that play. I wouldn't have done things any differently. It's like, well that the messaging feels different than what you just delivered, that's all.

00:02:25
Speaker 1: You don't.

00:02:26
Speaker 3: You don't handle you don't, you don't listen to all my answers. Then you pull.

00:02:29
Speaker 4: No, No, I'm not talking about you. I think you've actually been way more in this light the season.

00:02:33
Speaker 3: Well, Luke Weaver you loved his answer.

00:02:35
Speaker 4: Yeah, I also love Luke Weaver though.

00:02:36
Speaker 3: Okay, okay, like you pull, you chair, your cherry pick, and the answers you like that are like yeah, yes, sugging, tugging at my fandom and yes, yes, sorry we're not they're not robots.

00:02:49
Speaker 4: Well yeah that's what I want. I want more non robotic answer.

00:02:52
Speaker 3: Don't care what you want?

00:02:53
Speaker 4: All right, Well, I'm just letting you know.

00:02:55
Speaker 3: These are answers of pestering everyday questions. I want our guys in a good like Boom, we are locked in with it and when it's really good and all in between. I want us locked. I want to showing up every day, ready to prepare and ready to go.

00:03:11
Speaker 5: Period.

00:03:13
Speaker 2: That's Yankees manager Aaron Boone on talking Yanks, just delivering the goods. Cam. I mean, you played for Boonie, so you can lead us off here. I'll let you go. This is all player perspective here, because you've got basically player against the show with you know, two fan hosts, and they're going at it.

00:03:34
Speaker 6: Then and you said it and this is my problem to have so much respect for John Boy media.

00:03:38
Speaker 1: I do.

00:03:39
Speaker 6: But the problem is is that fandom that comes into play and and and I love Boonie's answers. And this is why you know, Scott, I'm the biggest Boonie advocate because I played for the man. And this is why the fans can say with what they want. They want to fire Boone, they want to they want this or that. The players in the clubhouse love Aaron Boone. I'm telling you, I'll say it again. The players in the love and the clubhouse.

00:04:00
Speaker 1: Love Aaron Boone.

00:04:01
Speaker 6: It's the reason why he keeps getting get extended because he can handle things that not many people can handle in New.

00:04:07
Speaker 1: York, right he said it.

00:04:08
Speaker 6: Everybody's differently, But one thing about Aaron Boone is he communicates with his players to the fullest and what you have to have.

00:04:15
Speaker 1: In New York, especially the Bronx.

00:04:17
Speaker 6: I told people the pinstripes, it's different that the expectation is different. You can say that you want. They're not the Yankees of old. They haven't won and so long, it doesn't matter. There's an expectation when you put on those pinstripes. And the mindset that Aaron Boone is trying to convey to the fan is the mind is the mindset that we can't dwell in the shit excuse my language, like we have to have a short mind frame. Even when they win, they go to the podium and they don't gloat, right, Hey, good win, what he get the job done? Long season? They don't clip that, right'. It's the same thing win or lose with Aaron Boon. Hey, it's unfortunate. We want to play better. But because he's like you said, you're not smacking water bottles and throwing stuff in the dug out. That's not the Yankee way I play with guys, or I play for guys like Terry Pendleton who said guys would have threw shit and been all upset and Sharlotte emotions. Back in the day, guys would have pulled them to the side and say, hey, get your craft together, right, like lock in, get over it. So there's a player mentality that I think watching this it let me know that I need to be careful about going back and forth with fans in the future because they're just some things that fans will never understand. And again, John Boy Media has done an excellent job, a great job, right. I think they made the game entertaining. I think they brought more eyes to baseball. But this conversation was a great example of fans still not being able to separate that part of being a professional. Right, We've been taught to be professionals. Give a professional answer, and that's what as a Yankee you do, That's how you carry yourself. You have a short memory, you give a professional answer, you move on. So this is just a great example of fans not truly understanding what players managers people in the trenches, have to go.

00:05:55
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00:06:27
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00:06:57
Speaker 8: So, believe it or not, I have a little bit to say on this one. I love how Candid Boone was there because that he's like, this is my this is a place where I can do this, and these are the guys that I can have this conversation. And also big ups to Jimmy on how he handled it and how that back and forth went. As a not super confrontational person, you know, I can't say that I would okay, sorry, okay, and he didn't, so I do appreciate that a lot. But I thought a lot about this, the relationship between fans. You know, Cam and I both play. He played for both New York teams. I played for the Mets. We have we have a lot of experience with your relationship with the media and then therefore the fans. Okay, there is up.

00:07:40
Speaker 5: In the Northeast.

00:07:41
Speaker 8: With all these fan bases, I'll include New York, I'll tellically Philly, Boston, like all these areas, there is a through line and it's.

00:07:50
Speaker 2: The fans want.

00:07:51
Speaker 8: The fans want to know that the players feel the same way as them, like when they are mad or they are angry, or they are like what's going on or confused, or they just want some reassurance. And sometimes because it's an emotional place and the emotions are high there for fandom, especially in person, they want that same energy from the people that talk about the game and the people who.

00:08:13
Speaker 2: Play the game.

00:08:14
Speaker 8: And you can only give so much of that as the as being the clubhouse, being the coaching staff, the front office, and the players, because it wears on you and it makes it it makes it harder to do the thing that everyone claims that they want.

00:08:27
Speaker 5: So the only group here that.

00:08:30
Speaker 8: Has the temper that stuff is the players, and is the the the the coaching staff. So here's a prime example in New York. And and please Mets fans, stay with me here because you might get mad at me right away, but it's going to come around a truss me.

00:08:46
Speaker 5: There was a.

00:08:49
Speaker 8: Perception sometimes of how our commentator grew. That's gk R legends. I want to throw it out there there at some of the best in the game would sometimes be overly critical of the player and we felt it sometimes. But what helped me, especially me, I was a guy who like, oh God, like we're doing our best here. Man, Like it's making it worse. But in reality, h they're not there for us. They're there for the fans, and what they are doing is showing that they feel the same way as the fan base, which is their job. Like that is the point. So the player is giving a little bit of candidates saying, hey, God, I don't want to be here talking to you right now. The goal is to never talk to you, and if you can give them a little bit like I hate this too, and then give your canned answers like but I'm ref focusing on this thing. I need to go look at the game and figure out what needs to change because I don't know right now, Like that does that goes enough? That's not enough for everybody sometimes, but that is what you have to give at times, and it's just the way way it needs to go. So like my perception changed flipped completely where I'm like, oh, they're amazing, They're doing their job incredibly. Well, that's why fans love them is because they see themselves. They're his own feelings in the feelings that are being betrayed to them. A prime example is the last one I'll give before this very long answer. Alec Bohm gets a lip red we were playing them when we were there, and he said, I bleep in hate this place when he made an airy, He's had a really tough game. This is in twenty twenty two, I believe in Philly. When he went and said, hey, hey, guys, like I was just upset and I said the thing and I like, obviously that's not how I.

00:10:26
Speaker 5: Feel full time. It's just in the moment. And they loved it because.

00:10:30
Speaker 8: They're like, oh, we also hate this place sometimes, like we you know, like watching this sucks. And it was the most surprising reaction because they're like, oh, what we wanted was for you to acknowledge how we're feeling. And so sometimes that's what's family. That's what fans want. Especially in the Bronx cam knows, they really want you to be like they want you to throw a chair like they would throw a chair, and Boonie's like, we can't do that all the time, so and he's right, he's right. So it just turns out some guys just never do that. They're just it's easier for them to give canned answers because they're just not good at showing their emotions in front of cameras. It's just not their comfort level. And if your whole team's like that, you're just not gonna get a lot of that. So that's what they're dealing with. But at the end of the day, that's what fans want, and that's what the players want.

00:11:19
Speaker 2: Well said by both of you and from the fan perspective, Yeah, I love when we get real answers, when we get spirited answers. But if I'm rooting for one team, guys, I'm not like waiting with bated breath after the game to see how passionate the answer is from a particular player about a particular play, and then that's how I'm going to make my decision on their passion and their care for what's going on exactly. Also, let's take a step back for the Yankee fans that go after Aaron Boone. Camp you want passion, He gets injected more than anybody in baseball. What else do you want?

00:11:54
Speaker 1: Right?

00:11:54
Speaker 2: The next guy that one day will be the next manager of the Yankees will probably not get booted from game as much as Aaron Boone. I think he is as passionate as it gets. Some of the criticism I'll see is, oh, he's you know, sticking up for the players. He's too positive. Welcome to twenty twenty five Major League Baseball. How many managers do you, either of you know nowadays that absolutely roast their players in public or in private. I can think of one recently, and he does not have a job, and he did not perform well. Pedro Griffol Okay, he picked a random day to just roast his players when they were facing a hot pitcher and they were a terrible team, and the players were like, you're gone. Am I off here?

00:12:35
Speaker 1: Guys? Not at all, not at all.

00:12:38
Speaker 6: And again I won't say a name, but I played for a guy who was coach Klin from the water Boy when she got highest.

00:12:45
Speaker 1: Because my language, all of a sudden, he started, he started to disappear. I won't say his name. He no longer has a job.

00:12:51
Speaker 6: Because this is my point when I say that, this is what fans don't understand.

00:12:56
Speaker 1: I get.

00:12:56
Speaker 6: So you are rather be pissed off after the game, come back and we still play and like crap, okay, what does that hell? Well, at least they're mad about losing, like I don't like, I don't. I don't get it, Like if you're if you're losing you're losing, right, And I just think that's the point for me where Booneie is the type of guy where the thing that fans don't appreciate again, there's no stat for it is when you wake up in the morning. And Tremp knows this right, and I'm sure Travis played for a guy. You wake up in the morning and we and this is the game that we love to play, the game that we use to provide for our families, the game that we use to put on the show for fans. There are certain guys, at least in my experience, I wake up and not only do I want to get to the ballpark, I can't wait to go play for that guy like Yo, that dude's awesome.

00:13:36
Speaker 1: And then there are dudes who like I.

00:13:38
Speaker 6: I freaking hate this place. I hate this guy. He's not a leader. I don't trust him. The players trust Aaron Boone And that's what bothers me the most sometimes about Yankee's fans. They want some other guy to come in and let's see if he if he has that same type of chemistry, that same type of relationships, the same type of reactions that the players have with him. Now that the fans for some reason are blinded by right, don't They don't see it, like, let's let's let you know so again, I guess it's one of those the grass isn't always bringing on the other side.

00:14:06
Speaker 1: So let me say that by Aaron Boom.

00:14:07
Speaker 6: But he's the guy that when you wake up, you're like, hell, yeah, I can't wait to go show up and put my spikes on and play hardest hell for that guy, because I know he's gonna have my back. I know he's gonna be honest. I know he's gonna communicate and tell me exactly what he wants from me, and that and there and there's no there's no price on that for me. And they just again they don't. They don't appreciate that. And you see it right.

00:14:25
Speaker 1: Here with the most diehard fans in the world, they don't appreciate it.

00:14:29
Speaker 2: All right, let's bring in a fan question or two. Trevor, you got you got one for us?

00:14:35
Speaker 8: I do uh from the Velaska Sports podcast. So I believe this is probably associated with some of the conversations happening around the CBA now that we're talking about this eighteen months before it's happening.

00:14:48
Speaker 5: But it is what it is.

00:14:50
Speaker 8: It says, do players look at how fans basically are paying higher prices every year for you to hold out and walk on them and walk on them over three million?

00:14:59
Speaker 5: And those those fans that.

00:15:01
Speaker 8: Have one hundred and fifty bucks and spend one hundred and thirty on your uniform and twenty on food. So what I'm assuming, what I'm trying to figure out what this saying is probably like, do you think about the fans when you're holding out for three more million dollars in your contract just to walk when they are coming and spending with one hundred fifty dollars spend one hundred and thirty on your uniform and twenty on food. I think this is a two prong like everything keeps getting more expensive and you guys keep asking for more money as like like those two things are completely directly correlated, which sure, but also no.

00:15:34
Speaker 5: So I wanted to touch on it.

00:15:36
Speaker 8: A little bit because I'm getting this, I'm getting this conversation a lot. I've been talking a lot about Rob and his comments about the CBA and just trying to set the tone on some stuff and just trying to shed some light on maybe some of the strategies.

00:15:47
Speaker 5: This is one of the ones.

00:15:49
Speaker 8: That he loves to hear, where there's a player holding out for a contract is being seen is being seen as one of the causes for prices of everything going up. But what I would ask the person who asks this question is who sets prices? Is it players or is it the person who owns the team, Because if you're hoping for players to take discounts to stay where they are and prices not to go down, that is a choice that has to be made by the second party.

00:16:25
Speaker 5: Like they can do that all day.

00:16:26
Speaker 8: But if the if the person who sets the prices chooses to continue to increase them, there's nothing a player can do about it because they don't have any power over that at all. It's not their decision. And I understand how it's one of the main expenses for a team, but it like they don't they have no there is no reason for them to tell you the truth about why prices are going They don't have to, and so that they don't, and it's it's built.

00:16:55
Speaker 5: That way on purpose.

00:16:56
Speaker 8: And when Rob reads stuff like this, he's like, exactly, it's the player's fault. All your prices are going up. But it's it's one of the many factors. Sure it's a big expense for the team, but it's about percentage of the money being made. When revenues are going are breaking records every single year, salaries total salary is also going to have.

00:17:17
Speaker 5: To go up with that because it's called fairness.

00:17:19
Speaker 8: And if you're if they keep saying, ah, we got to raise ticket prices, that just means they want to maintain how much money they get to take off the top at your expense. It's it's it's just the way.

00:17:30
Speaker 5: That it works.

00:17:31
Speaker 8: And if they can make you feel like it's a player's fault for that, then even better. It's they're not blaming me, they're blaming the employee that.

00:17:39
Speaker 5: I have to pay.

00:17:40
Speaker 8: That just doesn't really line up for me and is one major strategy put in play here.

00:17:46
Speaker 5: But you know what that.

00:17:48
Speaker 8: Number is is the debate should that we should be having and it's it's not and it's frustrating.

00:17:53
Speaker 5: So I just wanted to touch on that.

00:17:55
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, Trev, they're never going to divulge those numbers.

00:17:58
Speaker 6: You know that tell you forget because you want to be able to do.

00:18:03
Speaker 2: It as a lawyer.

00:18:05
Speaker 6: So like so like makes a great point. Rob Manford is a lawyer. I know, he's the commissioner Baseball. He's a lawyer. He knows how to make he's smooth. He is smooth as words.

00:18:15
Speaker 1: You really have to pay.

00:18:16
Speaker 6: Attention to what he's saying and how he's saying things, because again, I also like this is a fan who might have who also trip may have read some of the Rob Manford's words, because that's what he wants, like you said, and so there's a lot, there's a there's a lot to them.

00:18:29
Speaker 1: Now that's a great answer. I love it. Yeah.

00:18:32
Speaker 2: Also, an algorithm is what decides your ticket prices on a year by year basis. You could have the lowest payroll in the game, but if you're selling out every game, they're going to raise them. It has nothing to do with anything else. Think about it, Okay, and no one's knowing they're.

00:18:44
Speaker 8: Not cheaper, guys, pirates tickets are not cheaper.

00:18:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, Okay, they're not cheaper.

00:18:50
Speaker 1: Yeah.

00:18:51
Speaker 2: Like, let's let's be real on it. There's one person there that the players do not set any of that. They also just wanted to cap this for the crowd still listening about our last combo Aaron Judge is a superstar and he doesn't like go crazy after games one way or another. He's on the Derek Jeter playbook. So what what what are they even talking about when you start to get to the root of it. Sorry to go back to it, but I'm just like thinking as.

00:19:16
Speaker 6: Cover, like you we said, as a matter of fact, matter now I think about it, naming Yankee who acted.

00:19:22
Speaker 3: That way, memorization that that's.

00:19:28
Speaker 6: How they that's the Yankee way. Like, it's a great point. That's a great point. Glad you brought it back to it.

00:19:35
Speaker 1: It's a great point.

00:19:36
Speaker 3: You don't do that.

00:19:42
Speaker 2: They don't do that. Hey, we've got Tampa Bay Times reporter Mark Topkin joining us. Well, this is a fun team to cover so far this year. Topp are great to have you on. Right to the good stuff, buy or sell for the Rays. And if so, what do you think what do you think they're up to?

00:20:01
Speaker 5: I'm gonna have to answer your question.

00:20:02
Speaker 9: I'm probably gonna have to say both, which is kind of what they typically tend to do. They kind of almost pride themselves on not being just one or just the other. Like they say, those labels like don't apply to them, and that's kind of if you look back their history, that is kind of how they've been doing it. Be a little curious.

00:20:20
Speaker 5: I mean, Eric Neander kind of laid it out at the end of.

00:20:22
Speaker 9: The All Star break talking to a couple of us on the Zoom call and said, you know, if how they play in these games leading up to the deadline will determine how aggressive they are in adding he feels like they are a team that has a chance to play into October and win games in October. But he also said, as he has in the past, how close they are to the division lead will also be a factor, because you know, the chance to win the division and get one of those two buys is very appealing as well. So not doing so well on that front. Still six and a half out, one more game against the White Sox, then they go to Cincinnati, and then of course why not just be in New York leading right up to the deadline with a four game series against the Yankees, knowing that they're also obviously playing to see what you position they can put themselves in. So it's gonna be an interesting week or week, I guess eight days or so to see how this shakes out and they play a day game on Thursday, So you could have a situation where they finished that game Thursday and then they make a trade or two and there's still time before the sixth blog deadline.

00:21:19
Speaker 2: What are the significant needs in your mind? If they say, hey, we're generally going to buy, we had a good next week of play, we're in contention, what do you think they're going to do or what do you think they're going to target?

00:21:32
Speaker 9: Well, I think, as you guys were talking about, and Trevor mentioned, you know, the bullpen arms. There's a lot of them out there, their premium some of the premium guys, they certainly could use one, even though they feel a little better. Edwin who said I looked a little better last night in the time before than he had right before the break. But I would think a bullpen arm. And then I heard you guys talking about Morell. That would seem like a spot that they could upgrade at since he really doesn't play very much. But Johnny DeLuca just started to rehab a triple A. Ritchie Polasio has just started to rehab a triple A. So you know, it's one of those where it would have to probably be a significant upgrade to make it worthwhile, because you not only would be replacing morel but you'd then be blocking De Luca and or Plasios from coming back. But a right handed power bat, you know, to go with the lefties, you know, Brandon Loud, Johnny Ronda, Josh Lowe. It would seem like another right handed bat to help them from that side. I mean, Caminero certainly has done well, Yandi's certainly done well. But you know, one more kind of key right handed bat I would think would make sense. But knowing how they operate, what makes sense with me, They'll go out and get a lefty starter or something.

00:22:36
Speaker 1: I love that.

00:22:37
Speaker 6: And I want to stay there because you talk about what makes sense, because I was going to say, so you're saying the Ras are just gonna do raise things and wait for those guys to come back and try to make it run and trust in the process as they as they usually do. And one thing I want to ask you, you know, are you surprised that where they are as far as you know, when you looked at everything that was going on prior to the season, the stadium being you know, washed away and moving around, and you know, uncertainty about signing certain guys.

00:23:03
Speaker 1: Are you surprised at how.

00:23:05
Speaker 6: Competitive they have been or you or you knew that these guys they could band together and be competitive in alist because I'm surprised actually that they are where they are right now.

00:23:15
Speaker 9: Not with you, Cam, I mean, I thought that they did not do enough during the offseason. We were surprised they didn't do more to upgrade the offense. You know, Danny Jansen turns out to have been a pretty solid signing, but that wasn't like a significant offensive upgrade. There were a lot of intangible things that he brought that they wanted. Also, the Hastan Kim move was puzzling at the time. Obviously, the rehab took longer than they expected. So it's kind of hard to say if that's going to end up working out good or bad or horrible or great, you know, somewhere on the spectrum. I don't know where it's gonna end up being. But yeah, I am surprised because it didn't seem like they did enough to improve what was one of the worst offenses in the majors. They believed, as you said, in their process that they call it, they weren't twenty three was an aberration.

00:23:56
Speaker 5: They weren't that good. Twenty four was an aberration. They weren't that bad.

00:23:58
Speaker 9: They thought they'd be somewhere in the mid And you know those five six weeks where they went off on that twenty five and nine run, and they looked like a team that was going to be really good because they were doing it in so many different ways. They were doing it with power, they were doing it with speed. They are a track team when they've got the right guys out there, and they were doing it with small ball. I mean, there's still some players joking, but Kevin Cash used to not even like to use the B word, and they're bunting all over the place now. So it's been a really interesting evolution in corporation of creativity, a versatal offense, different ways to do things. To combine that with their pitching staff, and they look like a really serious postseason contending team. Then they just seem to run out of gas and the bullpen kind of went crazy bad in those last ten games on that roach. If they went two and eight, they were twelve four and twelve going into the break, and they win two out of three against Baltimore one on one so far against the White Sox.

00:24:52
Speaker 2: Time for a quickie break, cod Father and I are going to tell you about Hughle, but it's mostly going to be Todd Father, because I'm going to take a ship.

00:24:58
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00:25:51
Speaker 8: Speaking of pitching and a guy who's on his rehab apparent or rehab assignment and has been considered the ace of this team, Shane McClanahan hasn't pitched this year and he was kinda to take a step back again with some bicep tenanitis.

00:26:09
Speaker 5: Two parter are here.

00:26:10
Speaker 8: How does that change the mindset for starting pitching going into the deadline because this is not the best timing for that. Or do you think that they try to maybe go grab somebody, slide everybody up. I know they've had a lot of uh, they've had a lot of luck in starter health this year. Or do we think that like Joe Boyle could get some starts. I know that he's been throwing multiple innings. Are trying to keep him there without getting him into the one inning.

00:26:37
Speaker 2: Archetype.

00:26:37
Speaker 8: You don't want to do that if you can avoid it. Which one, what what are we thinking for Shane for his timeline coming back and how does that affect maybe some decisions being made here in the next eight days.

00:26:49
Speaker 5: Yeah, I mean I think it could have an impact.

00:26:51
Speaker 9: I think first of all, we always have to assume they know more than we do right as far as from the medical thing and where things are. If this truly is what they said yesterday, just a couple maybe that push is Shane to mid August. It still gives you the opportunity if you want to to trade a starter, because you do have Joe Boyle to step in. They've had a couple guys from Triple A that have been up here and shown well at times, and Ian Seymour, Joe Rock came up and threw.

00:27:16
Speaker 5: They've got some depth there.

00:27:17
Speaker 9: But I think ideally Shane was set up to step in perfectly if they decided to trade Zach Lettel, who looks to be tradable by Ray's standards. He makes a fair amount of money, He's going to his free agent year, probably doesn't come back next year, assuming everyone's healthy.

00:27:35
Speaker 5: But if you know you.

00:27:36
Speaker 9: Had Shane kind of lined up right, if you traded him, Shane was gonna be ready right around the deadline, it would have been.

00:27:40
Speaker 5: A very clean fit.

00:27:41
Speaker 9: You do have Joe Boyle, they are one hundred percent sure he could step right into the rotation. And then there's some you know, people that think he should be in the rotation right now. But you know there's been rivers about TODs Bradley. Obviously his name's gotten thrown out there. I think Shane McClanahan being set back has to give them a little more caution about trading a starter right now if they feel like they're going to be in this race, because you don't know with the Drew Rasmusen workload how that's going to play out. He looked pretty good for the first three innings last night, got to hit around a little bit in the fourth.

00:28:10
Speaker 5: That was it.

00:28:11
Speaker 9: They hoped to get him back to that five to six range where he was and was really good and made himself an All Star in the first half. But you know they talked about one hundred and fifty inning limit on him. Yeah, I don't know if that includes. I don't know if you get like that's like the home run derby. You get bonus rounds, you get bonus innings if you make the postseason. I don't know how that works, but I do think you gotta be a little more cautious now in trading a starter. If Shane is not on track to come back, and you mentioned he hasn't pitched this year, he didn't pitch last year either.

00:28:36
Speaker 5: That's the other thing.

00:28:37
Speaker 9: Don't forget he he's coming up on two full years since he last pitched in a game. So even then, if he comes back healthy, how much is it fair to expect a guy who hasn't faced major league hitters in two years?

00:28:50
Speaker 2: Yeah, well, I got one for you here. Let's get to position players a little more on Brandon Law hitting the shelf for this club and how much that affects things over the next few weeks.

00:29:02
Speaker 5: Yeah, it's tough.

00:29:03
Speaker 9: I mean, he was, you know, he had the oblique thing happened the same day he made the All Star team up in Minnesota. They had a kind of three or four days to kind of see how he felt, did a little bit of a huddle, and you know, made what was really a team first decision for him not to be active for the All Star Game, not take a chance on taking a swing in the All Star Game and knocking himself out for an extended period. He comes back and suddenly his foot starts hurting the other day, and you know, it turns out to be They thought planner frostiagis now they're saying tendonitis.

00:29:33
Speaker 5: Whatever it is.

00:29:34
Speaker 9: It's going to knock him out for at least a week, you know, ten days whatever ends up being again. So it's been tough. I mean they talk a lot. Kevin Cash often says, how Yanni Diez goes is how the Rays goes. But you can also make a case how Brandon Laud goes is how the Rays goes sometimes, and him not playing during most of that last road trip I don't think is a coincidence in their offense dagnating during that last road trip before the All Star break, so they need him back in there. I think they're optimistic this will be a short term thing. There's a lot of different treatments you do for those kind of injuries. They feel like he'll be back relatively soon at the end of the ten days. But yeah, that takes you right up to the day before the trade deadline if you lose a bunch of games. I mean, he's a guy that could be in trade conversations or teams not gonna be a little leary since he stopped playing. I mean, it just the levels, what you call it, the layers of the onion, or on this time of year or on anything like this, are always so thick and deep.

00:30:25
Speaker 6: I want to ask you about a guy who I think is he's box office when you talk about exciting and especially in the day and age where so many strikeouts, you know, so much swing and miss Chanler Simpson. You know, first off, I know moves are made and there's a pecking order, you know when you talk about prospects and who's ahead of who. For one, I was extremely surprised that he ever got sent back down.

00:30:47
Speaker 1: I think he's a guy that you figure out a way to make room for.

00:30:51
Speaker 6: Now he's back, continue to be that smart plug, continue to, you know, really just lead that offense. How special is he and do they think like Chandler Simpsons, Well, all look at some of his Motor League numbers. He's had an eight hundred ops before. When you talk about a guy who doesn't have a lot of pop, he can do things with his speed that will I think make up for the lack of power. What do you think about Chandler Simpson and what are the Rays see him as far as is he there to stay?

00:31:19
Speaker 9: I think he's there to stay for now for sure, and they couldn't be more pleased with not only what he did to get here, and think about this. He was a twenty twenty two draft pick who played second base at Georgia Tech, and now he's playing center field in the big leagues.

00:31:33
Speaker 1: Three years later.

00:31:34
Speaker 5: He went from I looked this up.

00:31:35
Speaker 9: It was less than a year his last game at Bowling Green in twenty twenty four to his first game in the big leagues this year.

00:31:43
Speaker 5: It was less than a year to go from High A.

00:31:45
Speaker 9: To Double A to Triple A to the big leagues and make an impact him. He's not just a twenty sixth man here. He is a huge part of what they do. And I think give the Rays. You guys were talking before I heard part of the conversation about the Rays had this reputation for you know, they always make good trades. Obviously they don't always make good trades, but many work out in their favor.

00:32:05
Speaker 1: Well.

00:32:05
Speaker 9: I think the drafting and the player development has gotten better too, And Channeler Simpson is a credit to those people, to their scouts, to their player development people, because you know, the word was, hey, he's got some raw skills, but this is guy's you know, it's gonna take some work to get him there, and they got him there. And Eric Neander was saying during spring training, you know, it was almost like that was his guy. You know, like, I think Channel Simpson is going to play a baby this year. I think he's gonna have an impact and okay, yeah whatever. You know, you hear a lot of things in spring training and they were right on with this kid. And he is a great kid. He has got the ability to keep getting better. I did a piece on him in Today's Tampa Bay Times, Tampa Bay Dot Comfrey Club and just they talk about he understands who he is. He doesn't try to be something else. He doesn't try to get too big, he doesn't try to now hit the ball out of the park. He doesn't try to do things he can't do. He bunts, he hits it on the ground, he hits it on the line. He runs like crazy. He causes defense. Kevin Cash, he used the phrase the other day and this is a paraphrase. I'm pretty close, he said. Shadow Simpson causes the biggest defensive shifts and adjustments in baseball of any hitter. If you watch how the corner infielders have to come way inc potential bunt, the middle endfielders usually played double play depth. The outfielders kind of crash in and sometimes shift over to the gap to try to make sure he doesn't hit the ball past them and get a double or triple or inside the park home run.

00:33:22
Speaker 8: I want to expand a little bit on that too, because he kind of covered a little bit of what my question is going to be. Because with Chandler Simpson I watch he's fun to watch.

00:33:31
Speaker 5: Especially running home the first right.

00:33:33
Speaker 8: If you plink, you're gonna miss it, and it's very hard to take your eyes just off him as a viewer. But what I actually loved watching is even this is what I did back when Billy Hamilton was doing similar things, is watching the reaction of the guys needing to field the ball when he is running. And so he has definitely had an impact on some specific games. So, off the top of your head, is there any specific play where you a defender who was known for being a very good defender seem a little bit out of sorts because they had to get Chandler A. Simpson out, maybe more so than they ever any other guy in the league. Like Anthony Volpi, for example, is a guy who I've seen rush by him a couple of times, but anyone else that you've noticed.

00:34:20
Speaker 5: I think we've seen it a couple of times.

00:34:22
Speaker 9: I think if you go back to the play, I know it was controversial because the scoring change was made a little bit later, but the play that essentially broke up mac freedz no hitter. Here was a ground ball between first base and the mound, and it was correctly scored a base hit. He just beat it out. I mean, there was nobody did anything wrong. Nobody could have done anything better. He was just that fast and put the ball on the right spot. But I don't have a great other example for you, Trevor where there's one that stands out. But I would say you just see the rush from the throws back. Chad Mattola, the Rais hitting coach who obviously has worked very closely with Chandler, we were talking the other day. I didn't get this in the article, but he had a good idea. He said, there should be like another stat column because you get penalized right when you reach on an error. It's just scored as if you made an out. But he said, the way Chandler's causing errors, there should be like a different kind of error where you still get credit for the hit because he forced the error, like a forced error versus an error that you know, a fielder makes him commission.

00:35:17
Speaker 5: Basically, this is a forced error.

00:35:20
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's costing him money. I mean, if you think about it, he's going to go to arbitration at some point in his life. I mean, those stats are real, they matter for things for the individual. Obviously it makes the impact on the game. But it's good, combo topper, great to have you on. Thank you for the time.

00:35:39
Speaker 5: We'll catch you soon, all right, It sounds good anytime. Guys appreciate